


Someone To Admire

by greenshi



Category: Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: AU, Crossover, Crossover Pairings, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:27:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22608520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greenshi/pseuds/greenshi
Summary: Sae brings her new boyfriend over for dinner. Makoto is less than impressed. (for @slouchingtowardbethlehem)
Relationships: Sae Nijima/Tohru Adachi
Comments: 2
Kudos: 29





	Someone To Admire

As the aroma of the simmering meal filled her home, Makoto was hard at work tidying up around the house. It was important that everything was absolutely perfect for tonight. After all, there would be company coming over, and not just any company, but Sae’s boyfriend. It was still hard for Makoto to wrap her head around, to be honest. Her sister was always so serious and focused on her work, Makoto was starting to worry that she would never find love. And yet, seemingly out of the blue, Sae had announced the other day that he was coming by for dinner. She tried to pry some information about the guy from her that evening, but Sae stayed quiet, for the most part. She did let slip that he was a police officer, and that they’d met while working together on a case. Aside from that, though, she knew very little about him. She didn’t even get a name.

Makoto heard the front door unlock and open just as she finished wiping down the countertops. She flung the rag over her shoulder and peered around the corner, careful not to be seen. Next to her sister was a rather plain looking man, with unkempt black hair and a dopey smile on his face. 

“Makoto? We’re home, come out here.” Sae called. 

“Welcome home, Sis! I’ll be right out!”

Makoto put the rag away and stepped out from behind the wall, approaching the two. She caught the man’s attention, and he offered her his hand.

“Ah, you must be Makoto. I’m Tohru Adachi. Your sister has told me quite a bit about you.” he said. Makoto took his hand and shook it. His grip was loose, and his hand was admittedly kind of sweaty. 

“That’s me. Pleasure to meet you, Adachi.”

A small beeping noise came from the kitchen. It was the timer Makoto set earlier telling her that the food was ready. 

“I’ll go get it! You two go sit down.” Makoto said, gesturing to the table before entering the kitchen. She plated the food and carefully brought it out, placing it in front of everyone. 

“Oh wow, this actually smells pretty good! Are you some kind of chef, Makoto?” Adachi asked, looking over his meal. 

“Ah, well, I wouldn’t go that far. I know the basics, but that’s about it.” Makoto explained. “What about you? Do you cook at all?”

“Oh, no, I’m terrible at it. I usually just pick something up on my way home, or else I get too tired after work and just skip eating all together.” 

That caught Makoto off guard. 

“You skip meals? Surely that would hinder your work the next day, wouldn’t it?” she asked. 

“Eh, not really. I’ll admit, I don’t exactly feel great the day after, but then I just have a little something with my coffee, and it goes away.”

“You know, if that ever becomes a bigger problem, I can bring you some food in the morning.” Sae offered. 

“You would? Thanks dear!” 

Sae brought her hand over and on top of Adachi’s, holding it lightly. She had a small smile on her face, and even a faint pink blush on her cheeks. Makoto paused for a second, a bit surprised. Sae was never this affectionate, at least from what she could remember. Even when they were younger, Sae was always rather reserved. Adachi must have been someone she really admired and cared for to make her open up like that. 

“...So, you two met by working on the same case, right?” Makoto asked. 

“That’s right. We were originally looking into Junya Kaneshiro, but as you know, he turned himself recently.” Sae explained, picking at her food.

“We were having some real trouble with that guy, so it was pretty lucky to have him come to us. I still don’t get why he did it, but I’m not complaining.” Adachi added. 

“Wasn’t he targeted by the Phantom Thieves? Just like with Kamoshida and Madarame, they made him confess, right?” Makoto said. The memory of Kaneshiro’s Palace was still fresh in her mind, including the mystery that had been revealed to her. A person with a black mask, breaking into Palaces and manipulating them for their own desires. Now that she was involved with the Phantom Thieves, she couldn’t let that possible threat be forgotten. Sae frowned.

“That’s one possibility. We did find a calling card on his person, along with the others that had been placed around Shibuya. And they were similar to the ones that those two received.” Sae admitted. 

“Do we gotta talk about work right now? Why don’t we move on to something else.” Adachi suggested. 

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to bring it up.” Makoto said. 

“No worries, no worries.” 

The conversation slowed as everyone ate. If it was awkward for Adachi, he didn’t make it obvious. His hand was still being held by Sae, who looked content as could be. 

“So, Makoto, your sister tells me that you’re really focused on your studies. How’s all that going?” Adachi asked. 

“It’s fine. It’s never that difficult for me to keep my grades up, so long as I keep myself focused on my goal.”

“Your goal? What’s your goal?”

“I’d like to be a police officer when I’m older. Wait, you’re a police officer, aren’t you? Do you have any tips? Any stories?” Makoto questioned, looking at Adachi expectantly. 

“Me? Well, lets see…” Adachi let out a small groan. “Well, if your boss is anything like my old one, they’re going to be a real piece of work. Piling work on you, yelling at you all the time, stuff like that.”

“Sounds...unpleasant.” Makoto commented.

“To be fair, he wasn’t all bad.” Adachi continued. “He was a nice guy when he felt like it. Hell, he even invited me over for dinner a few times.”

“Did he now?” Sae asked. Though it was hard to notice, her grip on her fork tightened, and her face tensed.

“Yeah. This is much nicer though, trust me.” Adachi assured. Sae relaxed. 

“Other than your boss, what else can you tell me?” Makoto asked again. Adachi thought about it for a moment, absentmindedly tapping his fingers on the table. 

“...Don’t have a weak stomach. You’ll be looking at a lot of grisly crime scenes, and the last thing you want to do is run off puking everywhere once you get there. Oh! And also, be good at keeping secrets. The amount of times I’ve blurted out information to the wrong people, I tell you.” he explained. “Nearly let slip to my neighbor that we tracked down the possible headquarters of Medjed, down by-”

“Tohru.” Sae cuts him off, giving him a look. “You almost did it again.”

“Oh, sorry!” he said, scratching the back of his neck bashfully.

Makoto was starting to have second thoughts about this guy. Before, she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, since Sae seemed to care about him so much. But now, he just seemed like some lazy cop who didn’t care. How did he even get her sister to like him in the first place? He seemed like the exact opposite of what she would want. 

A ringing sound came from Sae’s pocket. She checked her phone and frowned.

“Sorry, I have to take this. I’ll be right back.”

She answered the call and went upstairs, leaving Makoto alone with Adachi. Makoto tried to keep quiet, but her concerns got the best of her. 

“Adachi...You care about my sister, right?”

Adachi looked taken aback. 

“Of course I do. Why?”

Makoto poked at her food, carefully considering her next words. 

“It’s just...I’m not sure if…”

Adachi waited for Makoto to finish, but the words got caught in her throat. She tried to find a polite way to say what was on her mind, but she couldn't think of anything. 

“...You don’t think I deserve her, do you?” Adachi said suddenly. Makoto was surprised. She didn’t expect him to be so blunt. She nodded. 

“To be honest, I...I kind of feel the same way. Don’t get me wrong, I love being with her, but compared to her, I’m pretty lackluster. I just don’t get it.” he continued, staring out a nearby window. 

“I don’t either.” Makoto mumbled. “...Y’know, you’re the first person she’s gone out with in quite some time. It’s just strange to me that she’d pick some bumbling cop.”

“Ouch.” Adachi said, snickering a little. “To be fair, I’m not as bad as you think. I’ve been a cop for a few years now, so I’d like to believe I’m doing something right.”

“I hope so.” she muttered. Adachi frowned, looking back at her. 

“...Can I ask a question?”

“Sure, I guess.”

“What’s your opinion of Phantom Thieves?”

“I think they’re just.” she said with confidence. “They’ve been able to change the hearts of criminals who would have otherwise gone unpunished. That’s enough for me to support them.” 

“Fair point, fair point.” Adachi said, taking a bite of his meal. “And I suppose you don’t have much of a choice but to support them, huh?”

Makoto cocked her head to the side. 

“What do you mean by that?”

“Sae was telling me about how you were interested in them all of a sudden. I suppose a lot of people are right now, but even so, it’s strange. I mean, I wouldn’t have turned down a college recommendation letter for some guys I didn’t even know. But for you, I guess this is...personal.”

Makoto’s heart raced and breath caught. Adachi looked just as laid back as before, despite the accusation he was making. 

“Are...Are you saying I’m involved with the Phantom Thieves?” she asked, careful to keep her voice steady. Adachi shrugged.

“I know that some of the kids at your school were being targeted by Kaneshiro, so it’s possible that’s the only connection you have, but it never hurts to have a few theories.” he looked at Makoto. “...Makoto? Are you alright? You look a bit pale.”

Makoto just stared at her food, frozen. It was a relief to know that he wasn’t certain, but any suspicion that she was a Phantom Thief would be worrisome. 

“I’m fine.” she mumbled, voice monotone. Adachi just looked at her for a moment, seemingly deep in thought.

“...If you were, hypothetically, a Phantom Thief, I wouldn’t tell anyone.” Adachi admitted. Makoto looked up at him, stunned.

“You...wouldn’t?”

“Nah. The way I see it, they’re just making my life easier. If they want to deal with the guys who are causing us trouble, they can go right ahead for all I care.” he explained. “They seem to know what they’re doing, so who am I to get in their way.”

Makoto let out a small sigh of relief. She nodded as a small smile formed on her face. 

“Yeah, I agree.”

Soon after, Sae returned to the table. Dinner had gotten rather quiet, with the only discussions being on small, simple topics. The entire time, Sae looked at peace. Makoto still didn’t get why, out of all people, she chose Adachi. But, she supposed he wasn’t the worst option either. Maybe she just needed someone calmer than her, who could introduce her to some moments of reprieve between her high workload and pressure to always succeed. 

In almost no time at all, Adachi was ready to go back home. As he prepared to leave, Sae gave him a quick peck and a kind smile, which he returned. Just before he was out the door, he turned to Makoto. 

“It was nice to meet you, Makoto. I suppose I’ll be seeing you.” 

“Likewise. I look forward to seeing you again. And…”

Makoto leaned closer to Adachi, whispering so that Sae, who had just left to clean up the table, couldn’t hear. 

“Thank you. For making Sis happy, I mean.” she said. Adachi just held his grin, though something behind his eyes showed a deeper understanding. 

“Sure thing, kid.”

With a final wave goodbye to both sisters, he was out the door and on his way home.


End file.
